Card of the Week: Platinum Pratfall

prat·fall • /ˈpratˌfôl / • Noun

A fall on the buttocks.

A stupid and humiliating action.

This is not a great photo for a hockey card. I mean really — who exactly is flattered by this picture? Defenseman Rob Blake, getting knocked into his own goalie? Or goaltender Kelly Hrudey, about to get his head squished by Blake’s butt? Maybe this photo would make the net-crashing Canuck look cool — if his head was in the frame.

And yet, this is the photo that was used on Rob Blake’s “Sensational Sophomore” insert card in the 1991-92 Pro Set Platinum Hockey set.

Let me rephrase that; a photo of Rob Blake’s ass about to crush Kelly Hrudey’s head was THE photo that Pro Set used for an insert card touting Blake as a “Sensational Sophomore.”

One can only wonder what the REJECTED photographs looked like. The pic might have been better utilized for a goalie mask advertisement: Easton goalie masks – made to withstand being sat on by a 220-pound defenseman.

Blake was a regular in the Kings’ lineup in 1990-91 and 1991-92, so many pictures of him should have been available for Pro Set to choose from that year. Even the picture from the back of the card would have been a better choice for the front, since you can see his face. Oh, and because he doesn’t look like a stooge crushing his own teammate.

Better?

This was not the first time a defenseman was made to look like a doofus on his own card. Ten years prior, Topps — for some strange reason — used a photo of New York Islanders defenseman Denis Potvin falling on his own goalie. for his “Super Action” card.

Can you think of any other cards that use a very unflattering picture of a player ON HIS OWN CARD?

Considering the card photography of the 1980s we had to live through, I enjoy looking at cards like these. I’m sure I’d list Blake’s card front over 50% of the card fronts from the 1980s, probably more. When Upper Deck came on the scene it really pushed card photography to the fore front. Card companies paid more attention to the fronts and took more risks. Of course that eventually led to Olaf Kolzig’s hot dog, Wayne Pressley’s Top Gun impersonation and Doug Gilmour’s cowboy hat.

Speaking of those types – there was one from I think 97-98 UD Collectors Choice where the player is laying on the back of his brand new Ski-doo with his feet up. I was an Oilers player and I think it was either Dean Mcammond or Drake Berehowsky but I can’t remember it off the top of my head. Always remember that being one of my favourite cards for artwork growing up!